Nick Corsi, systems of support advisor for McLean High School, talks to parents about the Sources of Strength program that he advises, which is a national student-led program designed to change unhealthy norms and culture in schools with the goal of preventing suicide, bullying and substance abuse.

Photo by Fallon Forbush

Paul Stansbery, director of student services at McLean High School, answers a question during the Q-and-A panel.

More McLean students reported taking drugs and drinking alcohol last school year than the overall percentage of the county’s public school system, according to Fairfax County Public Schools.

FCPS presented results about McLean students from the Fairfax County Youth Survey on Thursday, Feb. 2, at the McLean High School Auditorium. The annual survey anonymously collects data regarding students' knowledge, attitudes and behaviors on health, health risks, substance use, eating disorders, obesity and sexual behavior.

Students in grades 8, 10 and 12 participate, unless parents and/or students choose to opt-out. Students in grade 6 also take a shorter, modified version that primarily differs in that it does not have questions about sexual behavior.

The latest survey, which was conducted in the fall of 2015, had 48,089 participants, which represented 88 percent of the enrolled students in the four grade levels.

“If you have one takeaway from the evening, this is the takeaway that we’d like you to walk out of the room with: What this says is students who have assets or protective factors are less likely to engage in risky behaviors,” said Dede Bailer, coordinator of psychological services for FCPS, during the presentation.

The assets Bailer said the survey asks students about are whether they:

have high personal integrity (example: Is it OK to cheat on a test?);

perform community service;

have teachers that recognize good work;

have adults in community to talk to;

participate in extracurricular activities; and

have parents available for help.

She said students who have three of these assets are less likely to engage in risky behavior than those who have none.

More McLean students reported drinking alcohol and using drugs compared to FCPS schools overall. These substances included painkillers and prescription drugs, like OxyContin, Vicodin, Percocet, Codeine, Ritalin, Adderall and Xanax, as well as hallucinogens like LSD.

This prompted Bailer to tell parents about another takeaway she wanted them to learn.

“What you think matters,” Bailer said. “We don’t think our kids are listening all of the time. We think our words fall on deaf ears, but it matters.”

For students who believed that their parents thought it was very wrong to drink, 92 percent of those students did not report that they drank alcohol, according to Bailer.

For students who said their parents did not think it was wrong, 52 percent of those students reported drinking, according to Bailer.

Bailer drew a hard line in the sand.

“Come right out and say it: ‘You’re underage, you may not drink,’” she said.

She encouraged parents to put more importance on parenting, rather than being friends with their children.

“So, we’re parents. They already have friends … You don’t think your children want you to ask them where they’re going? You feel like you’re prying into their privacy? It makes a difference.”

Students who report that their parents know of their whereabouts reported engaging in less risky behavior, said Bailer.

McLean students also reported less use of marijuana and synthetic marijuana that overall FCPS schools.

McLean Students Doing Better Than FCPS Overall

McLean students reported a higher number of students (47.5 percent) getting an hour or more of aerobic activity five or more days per week than FCPS schools overall (41.8 percent).

Fewer McLean students reported viewing TV for more than three hours (8.1 percent) and non-TV viewing like computer and video games for more than three hours (36.4 percent) on school days for reasons other than school work compared to FCPS schools overall (14. 7 percent; 48.8 percent).

More McLean students (31.2 percent) reported eating at least five fruits and or vegetables per day compared to FCPS schools overall (24.6 percent).

Fewer McLean students reported bullying another student on (4.8 percent) and off school property (4.3 percent) during the past year compared to FCPS schools overall (5.5 percent; 5.9 percent).

Fewer McLean students reported being bullied by another student on (12.8 percent) and off school property (9.3 percent) during the past year compared to FCPS schools overall (14.3 percent; 10.9 percent).

Fewer McLean students reported saying something bad about someone’s race or culture (36.2 percent), or who had someone say something bad about their race or culture (43.2 percent) during the past year compared to FCPS schools overall (36.5 percent; 48.8 percent).

Fewer Less McLean students reported being abused in a dating relationship (14.1 percent) during the past year compared to FCPS schools overall (18.9 percent).

Fewer McLean students reported they had stopped doing usual activities due to feeling sad or hopeless almost every day for two or more weeks in a row (22.7 percent) during the past year compared to FCPS schools overall (25.9 percent).

More McLean students reported using painkillers (5.3 percent) or prescription drugs (4.7 percent) without a doctor’s order during the past 30 days compared to FCPS schools overall (4.9 percent; 4.4 percent).

McLean students in grade 12 reported more texting (51.1 percent) or drinking alcohol (13 percent) while driving during the past 30 days compared to FCPS students in grade 12 overall (48.8 percent; 9.4 percent).

More McLean students reported being sexually harassed by another student (13.2 percent) during the past year compared to FCPS schools overall (12.8 percent).

More McLean students reported experiencing high levels of stress (36.6 percent) during the past 30 days compared to FCPS schools overall (35.9 percent).

“This is the voice of your children,” Bailer told the audience.

Bob Fuqua, principal of Chesterbrook Elementary School; Jill Tucker, director of student services at Longfellow Middle School; and Ellen Reilly, principal of McLean High School, also spoke to parents about some of the programming the schools are doing that promote assets for their students.

After the presentations, a Q-and-A panel took questions from the audience anonymously by collecting written questions. McLean High School Assistant Principal Kate Stavish and Principal Reilly moderated the panel.

Panel Participants

Tzeitel Barcus, assistant director of student activities, McLean High School

Bruce Walker, counselor, Longfellow Middle School

Beth Werfel, psychologist, McLean High School

Nick Corsi, systems of support advisor, McLean High School

Jessica Grenfell, counselor, McLean High School

Paul Stansbery, director of student services, McLean High School

Jennifer Spears, educational specialist for mental wellness, FCPS

Veronique Lilienthal, counselor, Haycock Elementary School

Questions included guidance on social media use and tips for handling stress, drug use, bullying and depression.

One question asked the panel to tell the audience about common things parents do that they wish they would not and things that parents do not do that they wish they would.

She also told parents that they should give their kids permission to take a break.

“Let them take more and more control of their own lives and their own education,” said Stansbery. “Let them experience a failure or two now while they’re in your care before they get out on their own.”

Parents excel and are fantastic at pushing their students in McLean, said Corsi.

“If there was an area that maybe we fall a little bit short in, it’s just being a little more cognizant of their mental health and for us to understand the amount of pressures that they put on themselves,” he said. “When we push them in athletics, when we push them in academics, they themselves have a lot of internal pressure.”

He encouraged parents to encourage activities that allow their kids to destress and to check in on their kids and ask how they are doing.

McLean High School recently deployed the “Sources of Strength” program, a national student-led program designed to change unhealthy norms and culture in schools with the goal of preventing suicide, bullying and substance abuse.

“I think the best way to treat any problem is to be proactive,” Corsi, who advises the program, said. “That’s one of the things that I love about Sources of Strength.”

Viewpoints

What did you think of the survey results?

Margaret Kaplan, McLean High School Parent.
“I’ve come every year, so it’s good to see some numbers go down. I’d like to see more parents here.”

Tracie Becker, President of the McLean High School Parent-Teacher-Student Association.
“It’s eye-opening data. I first attended one of these presentations six years ago and I was encouraged to see that so much of the risky behaviors are less frequent now.”